Currently, a wide variety of products for absorption of human body fluids are available in the form of feminine pads, sanitary napkins, panty shields, panty liners and incontinence devices. These products generally have an absorbent positioned between a liquid-permeable bodyside cover and a liquid-impermeable garment facing baffle. A pressure-sensitive adhesive which is secured to the baffle is generally used to attach the product to the inner crotch portion of an undergarment.
While such products are widely used, the problem of leakage of body fluid at the sides of the products still remains. Such leakage can stain the undergarment and this is viewed as being unacceptable to the consumer. U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,405 issued to Lassen and assigned to the present assignee, teaches a dynamically moveable sanitary napkin which uses attachment means to position the napkin relative to an undergarment. The sanitary napkin utilizes a retention strap and a positioning strap to keep it in place. However, neither strap adequately can prevent side leakage of body fluids.
U.S. patents which directly relate to controlling side leakage include: 3,397,697; 4,285,343; 4,589,876; 4,608,047 and 4,687,478. These patents teach the use of side flaps which extend laterally outward from the absorbent. The flaps are designed to fold upon themselves or wrap around the undergarment to provide protection. While these devices are successful, some are costly to manufacture as they require complicated shapes creating excessive trim waste. In addition, some are awkward to use and require careful placement within the crotch portion of the undergarment. The folding and attachment of the side flaps can also make release of the product from the undergarment difficult and inconvenient. Still further, many times the wearer has a light flow and does not require the side flaps. In these situations, the wearer would prefer not to use the side flaps and the prior art products do not offer this option. Accordingly, there remains a need for a product that will provide side leakage protection, be low in cost and give the wearer the option of when to utilize the protective sheet.